2016 Freebord Team Trip Wrap Up

For those of you who don’t know. Freebord has a team trip every year. Team riders meet up at the headquarters in San Francisco, then rally in the Dethbox (our beast of a van) to various locations. We set out to shred the sickest spots, find new ones, and to capture some epic Freebording. The original plan this year was to head south to the Sierras. That changed after team rider Jason Van’t Rood, and myself got broke off. We adjusted the plan, and chose to go with home court advantage and ride San Fransisco.

Every team trip is different. This one was a blast, but also a whirlwind. We were on the grind from the time Bently arrived at the factory on the first day. We didn’t stop till the early hours in the morning of everyone’s flight home. I was the official Dethbox driver for this trip, and got a behind the scenes perspective like never before.

We started the first day with a quick breakfast, and production meeting. Then we set off into the city with some specific shots in mind. We easily found some dope sidewalks and hills. Both David Bickett and David Schiotis slayed them for quite a while. Some new camera equipment was tested out, and things were going smooth. On our way to the next location, we picked up an additional photographer/shredder. After a few more hours spent at various hills, we came across a windy, wet, narrow road with a sick gap at the bottom. Towards the end of the day, we headed back to Freebord Mfg….but decided to shred De Haro a bit longer before calling it. We ended up checking into our overnight location in Daly City around 3am.

With the smell of microwaved eggs in the air, day two was almost ready to commence. The eggs weren’t enough to wake up David Bickett though, so Bently gave him a good morning sip of whiskey and got him out of bed. We headed to Wisconsin street to get some shots in the daylight. Then, onto to a park near the Golden Gate bridge to get some freestyle footage. We ran into old school Freebord team rider Mike Rogers while we were there. After getting the shots and catching up with Mike, we stopped for some snacks on our way to the next location. It was time for the scenic shots. So we whipped the Dethbox all over the city and collected as many as we could.

Once the sun started to go down, we tried out some experimental shots with LED light panels strapped to a helmet and camera for a while. It was getting late, but we weren’t ready to stop yet. We went onto find a few neighborhood hills, and took the opportunity snag some night riding photos. It was dope to see the flash of Bentlys camera momentarily lighting the riders as he followed them down the hill.

The next couple days seemed to roll into one massive day. We checked out of the spot we were staying in the morning, then headed off to the surrounding hills. We started by shredding sidewalk after sidewalk, getting some really sick downhill freestyle type stuff. I’m hyped on what I was seeing, and was inspired to get down on some sidewalk action. We had a minor set back when I accidentally crushed Shiotis’s bord with the Dethbox. I felt horrible, but was quickly forgiven. David put a new bord together faster then ever, and the shred continued. After our lunch break, it was time to hit this massive double set. The limits were pushed, and the set was thoroughly slayed. Still itching to ride, we headed back toward some hills. We ended up on the windy narrow road from earlier in the week, and rode there till the sun went down.

On the last day, we were still going at full speed. We headed east out of the city toward some really sick hills. Everyone was on point and killing it. Both Davids were destroying one of the craziest hills I’ve rode, and Bently was right behind them with the camera. We then went onto to shred the Oakland/Berkley area. Utilizing a drone and the follow cam, we continued to collect some sick downhill footage for the rest of the day. Stopping only to snag some dinner, we wolfed our food then started the hunt for some freestyle spots in the area. It was another late night of riding, and everyone was exhausted. We got what we came for, and headed back to the Freebord factory. We still had a lot to take care of before the morning though. So we rallied a bit longer, unpacked the van, and recapped the footage while Bently logged it all. I think we got a solid two hours of sleep.

It was a successful trip to say the least. Beyond having a great time, some epic Freebording was captured. We tried out some different techniques, and definitely got some unique shots. Everyone slayed it, from the riders to the camera men, and I can’t wait to see the finished edit. Im positive it will get everyone stoked, and really show what can be done with a Freebord. The video will be premiered at this years Freebord Rider Awards in San Francisco. Don’t miss the opportunity to peep the video before it gets released to the world! Hope to see you there. In the mean time, shred on my brothers and sisters!!!

About Corey Lucero

Going down hills on six wheels for almost a decade. Freeborder for life. I'm not paranoid, but you might catch me looking over my shoulder while sliding.